USA > Maine > Penobscot County > Orono > Centennial celebration, and dedication of town hall, Orono, Maine, March 3, 1874 > Part 1
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REYNOLDS HISTORICAL GENEALOGY COLLECTION
3 1833 01091 8198
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1874. 1774.
CENTENNIAL
CELEBRATION, 1
AND
DEDICATION OF TOWN HALL,
Me.
ORONO, MAINE,
March 3, 1874.
Forsan et hæc olim meminisse juvabit.
PORTLAND : BAILEY & NOYES. 1874.
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STATE (AGRICULTURAL) COLLEGE,
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31168 .6
Orono, M ...
... Centennial celebration, and dedication of town hall, Orono, Maine, March 3, 1874 ... Portland, Bailey & Noyes. 1871.
168 p. front., plates. 233cm. At head of title: 1774. 1874. "(Note to p. 30>": 1 leaf inserted after p. 144. CHYLP CARD
1. Orono, Me .- Ilist. 2. Maine-Hist .- Colonial period.
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1-8994
54069 Library of Congress
F29.0707 [a24c1)
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Digitized by the Internet Archive in 2014
https://archive.org/details/centennialcelebr00unse
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F 84168.6
PRESS OF B. THURSTON & CO., PORTLAND.
xc 54069
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1774. 1874.
DEAR SIR:
It is proposed to celebrate the building of the new Town Hall (just completed) by exercises appropriate to the occa- sion, as well as to the celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the settlement of the town, which occurs the present year.
These exercises are to consist in part of an Address by ex-Gov- ernor Washburn, a former resident, and a Poem and Song by Rev. Henry C. Leonard, also a former resident, and are to take place in the HIall, Tuesday Evening, March 3, 1874, at 7 1-2 o'clock.
You are cordially invited to be present.
A. G. RING, EBEN WEBSTER, JAMES WEBSTER, RICHARD LORD, CHARLES II. COLBURN.
Com.
ORONO, Feb. 23, 1874.
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Order of Exercises.
MUSIC BY BANGOR CORNET BAND.
FANTASIA-Recollections of the Opera. . ... E. Beyer. SELECTIONS FROM BENEDICT'S OPERA-The Lily of Killarney.
HIOT CODLINS-Serio Comic Fantasia. E. Beyer.
CORNET SOLO-Anna Polka. J. Legendre.
INVOCATION.
REMARKS OF WELCOME BY THE COMMITTEE.
ORGANIZATION OF THE MEETING.
MUSIC. POTPOURRI FROM MARTHA-From V. Flotow. . Arr. by Heinicke.
CENTENNIAL AND DEDICATORY ADDRESS, by Hon. Israel Washburn, jr. MUSIC.
WALTZ-On the beautiful blue Danube Strauss. ORIGINAL POEM, written for the occasion, by Rev. H. C. Leonard, entitled " Birthday Celebration."
ODE OF DEDICATION, by Mrs. B. H. Mace.
MUSIC.
SELECTIONS FROM IL PIRATEE. Bellini.
REMARKS.
MUSIC. YANKEE MUSICAL JOKER-Serio Comic Fantasia. . by Ringleben. SONG, " THE OLD CHIEFS," by Rev. II. C. Leonard.
1774.
ORONO. 1874.
CELEBRATION AND DEDICATION.
The following notice of the celebration of the one hundredth anniversary of the settlement of this town, and of the dedication of the Town Hall erected therein, is taken, substantially, from the Bangor Daily Whig and Courier of March 4, 1874.
This being the one hundredth year since the set- tlement of Orono, the citizens determined to cele- brate the event by fitting exercises ; and their new Town Hall having been completed, the occasion of its dedication was seized upon as the most appropri- ate time for the Centennial Celebration.
The matter was left in the hands of an efficient committee; a great number of invitations were issued ; Hon. Israel Washburn, jr. (a citizen of the town from 1834 to 1864), was engaged to deliver an address, Rev. II. C. Leonard, pastor of the Universalist church in Orono from 1847 to 1855, was requested to write an original poem, and other arrangements were per-
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fected ; and last night an immense throng gathered in the hall, to attend the celebration.
Before speaking further of the exercises, however, it is well to give our readers an idea of the edifice in which they took place, and we therefore append the following
HISTORY AND DESCRIPTION OF THE BUILDING.
For a long time past it has been apparent to the citizens of Orono that a town hall was needed in that flourishing burgh, and within a few years various propositions have been considered looking toward its erection ; but it was not until the March meeting one year ago that the matter took definite form, and then, after due deliberation, it was fully decided to build a commodious hall for town and other purposes, and in the same edifice to have offices for the accom- modation of town officials and officers of the fire department, a room for the fire engines, etc. A committee was chosen, and to its members the matter was given in charge, they being invested with full powers to act in behalf of the town. The building committee consisted of Messrs. A. G. Ring, Eben Webster, James Webster, Richard Lord, and Charles H. Colburn.
G. W. Orff, Esq., of Bangor, was appointed archi- tect, and submitted plans which were adopted by the
.
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ORONO CENTENNIAL.
building committee. Tenders for building were in- vited and contracts finally made with Mr. David McMillan, of Orono, for the entire mason-work, and with Messrs. C. B. Brown, of Bangor, and D. Chase, of Upper Stillwater, for the wood-work, cach party to furnish the necessary materials.
With commendable promptness work was begun on the foundations carly in July, and rapidly pushed forward. Work on the superstructure was com- menced as soon as possible, and hurried on as fast as was consistent with thoroughness, a large force of the best workmen being employed, and the building was completed about a month ago. The building stands on a very fine and commanding site, being located on the westerly side of Main street, nearly opposite the Orono House. The lot falls off considerably as it recedes from the street, thus affording a good base .. ment for heating apparatus and other necessary pur- poses. The building is fifty-two feet in width, on the street, and extends back eighty-seven feet. The walls are about forty feet in height, and are crowned by a roof of good pitch, which in turn, is surmount- ed by a cupola of graceful design and a tall flag-staff. The front has three entrances on the street level, above which are three lofty, well-proportioned win- dows, which open on a balcony. The gable is filled with ornamental wood-work, and altogether the front
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presents an imposing appearance, well worthy the character of the building.
THE FIRE DEPARTMENT.
The middle entrance in front has two doors, is about ten feet wide, and leads direct to the engine room, which is thirty by thirty-nine feet, exclusive of a broad entry, and thirteen feet high. This room is to be occupied by the fire engines, hose carriages, and other apparatus of the fire department, and has a hose tower twenty-one feet high, extending into the basement. In the basement will be located a large cistern, so that in case of fire in the vicinity of the hall, the engines can be worked without being removed from their room.
In the rear of the engine room is the firemen's hall, twenty-one by thirty fect, and thirteen feet high, to be used for the meetings of the engine companies, and behind this is a kitchen, twelve by nineteen feet, with several spacious ante-rooms and closets, and a sink and range, for use at levees, suppers, etc., when cooking is necessary.
THE OFFICES
above alluded to, are located on the same floor with and north of the engine room, etc., and are reached from a passage-way or entry six and a half feet wide, extending the length of the building. The first, nearest the street, is the Selectmen's office, fourteen
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TOWN HALL. '
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by twenty-four fect, fitted up with counter, case for books and papers, etc. Next back of this is a room for the Superintending School Committee, fourteen by sixteen feet, and behind this are two ante-rooms each fourteen by sixteen feet.
THE HALL
on the second floor, is reached from the street front by two entrances-one each side of the engine hall entrance-and two flights of stairs, each eight feet wide, which lead to a vestibule twelve and a half feet wide extending across the building. In this is loca- ted the ticket office, and from it two doors open into the hall, a handsome room seventy-two by fifty feet in size and twenty-five feet high. A commodious gallery extends along the sides and across the rear of the hall, and the ordinary seating capacity of hall and gallery is about nine hundred, though nearly fif- teen hundred persons can be accommodated by " packing." The hall is, like the exterior of the building, painted pure white, but it is intended to have the walls and ceiling frescoed in a year or two. From the spacious stage a stair-case leads down to an entrance in the rear of the building, where en- trance may also be gained to the hall and to the lower floor. The hall is warmed, as well as the rest of the building, by two wood furnaces in the base- ment, put in by Mr. Bond, of Orono. It is lighted by
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ORONO CENTENNIAL.
gas supplied by an automatic gas machine, manu- factured and set up by the Gilbert & Barker Manu- facturing Co., of Springfield, Mass.
All the work about the building has been done in a thorough manner, and the contractors, as well as the building Committee and the citizens of the town, may well be proud of their new town hall.
The total cost of the completed structure will be not far from $17,000.
CENTENNIAL AND DEDICATORY EXERCISES.
The fine hall we have thus briefly described was packed to its utmost capacity last evening, and at an early hour every bit of standing room was occupied, and hundreds were unable to gain admission. Large delegations came in on the special trains from Old- town and Bangor; and from many other places, both within and without the county, there were many vis- itors. The townspeople did everthing in their power, even to giving up their seats in the hall, for their visitors' comfort and convenience.
A few minutes before eight o'clock, the Bangor Cornet Band, Harlow, leader, opened the exercises by playing in their best style Beyer's "Recollections of the Opera," a potpourri from "The Lily of Kil- larney," and a Fantasia by Beyer.
Andrew G. Ring, Esq., chairman of the Building
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Committee, which was, also, the committee of ar- rangements for this occasion, after a fervent prayer had been offered by Rev. C. F. Allen, D. D., President of the State College, made the following
ADDRESS.
Fellow Citizens and Invited Guests ; Ladies and, Gentlemen :
In behalf of the committee appointed by the town to superintend the erection of this building, I greet you, and bid you welcome here to-night.
We have met here to commemorate the settlement of our town one hundred years ago, and in connection therewith to dedicate this building, to all suitable public uses by ourselves, and, we trust, by our chil- dren's children.
For a number of years many of our citizens have had in mind the erection of some such building as this. Two years ago, after numerous schemes and repeated failures, a vote upon the question was taken by the town, and the result of that vote is before you.
To you, fellow-citizens, we wish to say, if the com- mittee have performed the duty you assigned them,
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to your satisfaction, it is ample reward for any anxie- ty they may have felt as to the final result.
It is with feelings of extreme gratification, and, I hope excusable, pride, that in behalf of the commit- tee, I now present you, as the fruit of their labors, this beautiful and commodious structure, and bid you all a cordial welcome on this interesting occasion.
I am directed to submit the following nominations for the officers of this meeting :
For President, NATHANIEL WILSON, Esq.
For Vice-Presidents, B. P. Gilman, Gideon Mayo, Jeremiah Colburn, Josiah S. Bennoch, Cony Foster, Samuel Page, Levi R. Weeks, George Ring, Freeman Rollins, Abraham Colburn, E. P. Butler, Andrew Smyth, John Libbey, Horace Banks, John H. Gilman, Joseph Graves, Abiather Foss, Jesse Snow, W. W. Temple, Elijah Marsh, Edward Mansfield, Nathan Frost, Paul D. Webster, Joseph McPheters, William Lunt, Charles Buffum, A. W. Weymouth, Stinson Peaslec, John W. Mayo, Levi Den- nett, David McMillan, Hugh Reed, Allen Freese, Elijah W. Wyman, Benjamin Vinal, Matthew Oliver, Albert H. White, William Heald, H. M. Codman, Joseph B. Chase, E. R. South- ard, Niah Gould, Robert J. Hamilton, Joshua Johnson.
For Secretaries, Col. John W. Atwell and Joseph C. Wilson, Esq.
And these gentlemen were elected to the offices to which they had been nominated.
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The President then said-
Fellow Citizens :
For the high honor conferred in selecting me to preside on an occasion of such deep and absorbing interest to this community, accept my most sincere and grateful acknowledgments, and trusting to your partiality and kindness, I shall endeavor to discharge the duties with such ability as I may possess. But, before proceeding to the regular exercises of the evening, so appropriately arranged by the very com- petent committee who have had this whole business in charge, I shall be pardoned for a brief allusion to some points of common interest immediately con- nected with this centennial celebration and dedica- tion of the Orono Town Hall.
This third of March, 1874, marks a new era in the history of Orono. This noble structure, under whose stately roof, you, my fellow-citizens, and these our numerous, kind, and sympathising friends from Ban- gor and neighboring towns, who have here gathered to unite with us in ceremonies at once suitable and eminently becoming so eventful a period, is truly a fitting monument to the early settlers-to those
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bold, enterprising, true men, who have given Orono its good name, and laid broad and deep the founda- tions of its prosperity and success.
May a merciful Providence vouchsafe that this structure, in its artistic skill, its admirable propor- tions, its marked conveniences, its modest, simple, yet tasteful finish, may prove a pleasing and instruc- tive memento of the past, and, at the same time, an impressive incentive and stimulant for good to the present and all future residents of this goodly town.
One hundred years have elapsed since the first white man is known to have sought, here, upon the banks of the Penobscot and Stillwater rivers, to es- tablish for himself and his posterity a home. In this assembly and before me now, are many of the immediate descendants of the first white settlers.
One hundred years! The human mind can, with difficulty, grasp this span of time. We cannot well command a perfect view of the long past-of the trials and sufferings-or of the sorrows and joys of these departed ancestors. But, their record is made up-their history is written, and we here and now solemnly pledge ourselves to cherish their memory
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-to throw over their faults the mantle of charity, and resolve to become ourselves, wiser and better for the noble example they have left us.
Would time and the arrangements for this festival warrant the intrusion, most joyously to myself, at least, would I devote a full hour in rehearsing some- what of the past during my forty years' sojourn in Orono. But, cheerfully, I waive that pleasure in an- ticipation of the far greater pleasure you are about to experience, in listening to the Historic Oration, especially prepared for the occasion by a former dis- tinguished resident. Before, however, calling upon him, I have deemed it not inappropriate to say a word, by way of commendation, of those who have been more immediately concerned in the building and completion of this structure.
First, in order, I propose special commendation of George W. Orff, the architect and designer. He has shown himself master of his profession and a genius in the art.
Second, large credit is due to our own fellow-citi- zen, David McMillan, who has done this superb spec-
2
1
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imen of plastering and all the mason work ; who, also, prepared the ground and built the firm, solid, and secure foundation upon which the building stands.
Third, I take the responsibility to make this public mention of the names of the contractors-who have finished and completed the carpenter and joiner work-Charles B. Brown, of Bangor, and W. D. Chase, of Upper Stillwater.
Faithfully, skillfully, and most thoroughly have they performed their part of the contract. They have spared no effort and no reasonable expense. That which they engaged to do has been done well and satisfactorily. And here we are in the possession of a public building, which is not only an honor to the builders, but an honor and an ornament to the town.
Fourth; Our enterprising committee, having no deeds of darkness to conceal, and having heard of the fame of a firm doing business in Springfield, in the good old Commonwealth of Massachusetts, by the name of Gilbert & Barker, sent thither and made request that they come east and let their light shine.
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And here you behold a specimen-not only beau- tiful and brilliant, but economical.
In this connection, fellow-citizens, I had designed to make a passing allusion to our building committee, and make a kindly and deserved mention of their valuable and gratuitous services, but they have sealed my lips, and forbid even the mention of the two first letters of their names. Fortunately they are per- sonally known to most of you, and, through them, this building is now presented, complete in all its parts, and ready to be occupied.
May it stand a hundred years to come-a speaking monument of the past, and a perpetual reminder to the generations, yet unborn, who may be permitted to gather here to discourse of the olden times-of the good old times of 1874.
Fellow-citizens-I will now announce to you the orator of the evening, our former fellow-citizen, the Hon. ISRAEL WASHBURN, JR. His name announced, you need no other, or more formal introduction of him from me.
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MR. WASHBURN'S ADDRESS.
When, in 1605, Capt. George Weymouth, of the English ship Archangel, visited the gulf of Maine, planted a garden at Boothbay, and on the island of Monhegan set up a cross in testimony that he, then and there, under the auspices and in the name of the English crown, took possession of the territory now embraced within the limits of the State of Maine, that territory was occupied by two principal Indian nations, to wit : the Abenaques, having four tribes, and the Etechmins,* who were divided into three tribes. The largest and strongest of all the tribes of Maine was that of the Tarratines or Penob- scots. They belonged to the nation of the Etech- mins. They were, says Judge Williamson, " a numer- ous, powerful, and warlike people, more hardy and brave than their western enemies, whom they often plundered and killed. .. After the conquests and
* The correct spelling of the names of these tribes, according to the Rev. Eugene Vetromile, is Abnaki and Etchimis.
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glory achieved in their battles with the Bashaba and his allies, they were not like their enemies, wasted by disease and famine. They retained their valor, animated by success, and strengthened by an early use and supply of firearms, with which they were furnished by the French. Less disturbed than the western tribes in the enjoyment of their possessions, they were also more discreet ; they were always re- luctant to plunge into hostilities against the English." They inhabited the country upon the Penobscot river, and claimed dominion over the contiguous ter- ritory, from its sources to the sea. Their principal village or seat was probably never permanently es- tablished at any place, until it was fixed at Oldtown island, in the early part of the last century. Previ- ous to that date it was movable; or perhaps the tribe occupied several villages at the same time, for it was a numerous people, and occupied a wide do- main. Even as late as the period of the Revolution, when it had been thinned and wasted, it possessed four hundred fighting men. But whatever the fact may have been in regard to the permanent or tem- porary character of their villages, or the number of
.
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them existing contemporaneously, there is no doubt that they were almost invariably within the boundaries of the old town of Orono, or in its immediate neigh- borhood. Besides the seat at Oldtown, there were vil- lages at one time or another near the head of the tide in Bangor, one of which, Williamson thinks, was the ancient Negas, and which was known to the early settlers as Fort Hill. There was also a village on the tongue of land that extends eastward from this hall to the Penobscot river, at Ayres' Falls, as they are now termed, bounded on the north by the Still- water river, and on the south by the basin. The Indians called the place Arumsumhungan. For
many years after the settlement of the town by the white men, the vestiges of corn-fields and of habi- tations were plain and unmistakable, and until comparatively a recent period, stone weapons, and implements of agriculture, were occasionally turned up wherever the plough was driven, some of which I have seen in the possession of the late John Ben- noch, jr., Esq., and Col. Eben Webster, jr. I think it not improbable that this point of land at the conflu- ence of the Stillwater and Penobscot rivers, may
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have been the site of the ancient "Lett " of the In- dians. When Major Livingston, in 1710, visited Canada in company with the younger Castine, with despatches for the French Governor, their journey was by way of the Penobscot river, and they tarried several days, detained by the Indians, at the " Island of Lett, where they met with fifty canoes, and twice as many Indians, besides women and children." As they went up the river from Castine in canoes, and were met by the Indians at an island, it seems, I think, more than probable, that the island referred to was the first at which they arrived above tide water, and that the place of the meeting was where there were falls and a carry.
There was, also, a village at Nicola's Island, near Passadumkeag, and I agree with Judge, Godfrey in the opinion expressed in his able and interesting address at the centennial celebration in Bangor, that the fort and village destroyed by Col. Westbrook in 1722 were on this island. After the destruction of this place, the Indians and French gathered at Fort Hill, before mentioned, and built a village, consisting of several cottages with chimneys and cellars, a
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chapel, and forty or fifty wigwams. But no sooner had intelligence of the planting of this new village reached Fort Richmond, than Capt. Joseph Heath was despatched with a company of men to break it up. The Indians, having received news of the ap- proach of Capt. Heath, deserted their village, and nothing was left for him and his men to do but to commit the village to the flames. Having accom- plished this feat, they returned to Fort Richmond.
The Indians, after the retirement of Capt. Heath, returned to their old seat at Oldtown, and have occu- pied it uninterruptedly ever since.
Their numbers, it is understood, are about as they were forty years ago. Their village is improving in every way, and, as seen from other islands and the mainland, it forms, with its white chapel and cottages, a picture of no little beauty. The preservation of the tribe, under circumstances unprecedented on this continent, the increasing capacity of its members, their steady improvement in habits and education, while living in the immediate neighborhood of a large white population, are facts which present their character and conduct in a most favorable light to
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the attention and consideration of the student of civilization, the sociologist, and the historian.
These Penobscot Indians were, I think, a peculiar people among the aboriginal tribes of this portion of the continent. While sturdy and brave, they were not quarrelsome; they seem never to have been in- clined to make war upon the English, except under the influence of strong provocation ; and not unfre- quently gave examples of patience and submission, under fancied wrongs, that would have added a graceful charm to the character of their civilized neighbors. Of all the tribes, they had the least of the Philistine in them, and the most of that which, under better and fuller development, might stand for "sweetness and light."
Williamson, referring to the conduct of this tribe about 1757, remarks-"No other eastern tribe had treated the English with so much forbearance and honor; and the good man's heart must be touched with sympathy for their melancholy condition, when he reflects that, in the present war upon them, our own people were the first and principal aggressors."
I do not remember to have heard or read that for
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a century and a quarter a single white had been wantonly killed by an Indian, or an Indian by a white man. It is undoubtedly true that at times they have been inconvenient and troublesome, and that at one period during the Revolution, some apprehension as to their purposes and good faith was indulged. That there was any real occasion for alarm, has generally been discredited in the light of all the facts that subsequently transpired.
They were quite too familiar occasionally in the houses of their white neighbors, and sometimes, when in drink especially, were uncomfortable and rude ;- often " their room was better than their company." But not seldom they were welcome, as they were always frequent, and usually uninvited guests, in the best families. Take from the homes of the Colburns, the Marshes, the Freeses, the Whites, the Websters, the Bennochs, all recollection of "Orono," of "Mary Sissa," and of others who were in the habit of visiting their houses, remove all associations connected with them and their visits, and extinguish all recollection of their frequent acts of exceeding kindness and humanity, and you would destroy more that is pictur-
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